Venkath Onslaught
Overview The Venkath Onslaught was a galactic war waged between the Terran Confederacy and the Thoren Empire from years 7126 to 7149. The war was ended after the detonation of a Markus-Lindholm Entropy Detonation Device on Poenari, the venkath homeworld and leading stronghold. This war eventually resulted in the abdication of authority from the Confederacy, leading to the formation of the Legacy Federation, Aurelian Dominion, and Thesian Republic. __toc__ First Contact Humanity first encountered the venkath people through a middleman. The prior government of the Strov-Rachetov Coalition was responsible for a significant portion of intermediary communications with other alien species shortly after the end of the Terran Civil War, their language one of the first to be translated and understood by human military officers and translation analysts. Through negotiations with an independent Coalition corporation, it was discovered that there were elements within the Coalition society that were assisting the venkath in finding new targets for their raids and seemingly genetic bloodlust in exchange for immunity. Where humanity thought it was entering potentially profitable resource negotiations with another species, it instead walked into a trap. First physical contact with the venkath resulted in the abduction of several diplomatic representatives, a Terran Confederacy honour guard, and over a dozen business tycoons who were keen on getting in on the ground floor of new commerce negotiations. Although their fates remain unknown, it is generally agreed upon that these individuals were the first humans to be harvested. War Casus Belli The loss of the negotiation party was significant. Many parties within the Confederacy were eager to retaliate, demanding that the human fleets thrust themselves into the stars to find the illusive venkath people and rain fire down upon their heads. It was argued that the 20 years that had passed since the end of the Terran Civil War had left the ranks full of veterans who knew nothing except war, and that this left people on edge. They needed a justifiable outlet, a "casus belli", for military morale to remain high and humanity to remain safe. A surgical strike was approved by the president, with military intelligence tasked with finding a suitable venkath target. Despite recommendations to abstain, reports were filed and targets were drawn up. Within only a month, the Confederacy set out to even the score. It was a disastrous failure, with only one ship making it back from the engagement. Those who survived claimed to see footage of the venkath defenders tearing apart the flesh of humans on the ships they boarded, devouring them while they were still alive. None of those who survived reentered military service, the horror so potent that they were unfit for duty and delegated to clerical work on Earth. While many assumed this was a stalemate and the two empires would settle for an uneasy peace, humanity faced a whole new reality when the venkath launched a full-scale surprise assault on Earth, completely obliterating the defenses around the planet, harvesting a significant portion of the Confederacy's government, and placing the entire world under siege. The Onslaught had officially begun. Demographics & Scale The Venkath Onslaught was a war of magnificent proportions against the human species. While alien races were certainly also victim to the venkath aggression, there are no known records of such a war of this scale against anyone except humanity. It is estimated that more than 150 billion humans died over the 23 year span of the war, with several planets being wiped out entirely and other worlds being reduced to mere prefab colonies. There were only a handful of human worlds that didn't see combat or raiding although this meant little in a galactic economy. Humanity as a whole was dramatically reduced in strength, influence, and numbers as a result of the Onslaught. Category:Historical Documents